Auto Repair Merchant Towing Fraud

A fraud scam involving auto repair merchants has recently been reported in which the merchant is asked to  wire money for the tow of a vehicle. A detailed description of the scam is as follows:

The repair merchant receives a call,sometimes over the hearing impaired relay network, and the person states that they need to have a vehicle towed to the merchant's location for repair. The caller claims the vehicle is in another state or a fairly long distance away and that they have just moved into or are about to move into the area the repair shop is located. The repair merchant will accept a credit card, and will send wire transfers to a "towing agent" given to them by the caller in the other city. The amount to be wired usually ranges between $2000.00 and $4000.00.

The caller will generally explain that the towing agent is part of a network of professionals that are in the business of transporting vehicles, and that wire transfers from a repair merchant to them are common.

There is no actual vehicle or towing agent, and the repair merchant is out the money they have wired and will receive a chargeback for fraud on the sale they processed using the credit card number they were given.

For more information on this scam, or if you think you may have fallen victim, please call 512.302.5555 ext. 7000.